You can have peace. Or you can have freedom. Don't ever count on having both at once. - Robert A. Heinlein -

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Saturday, March 03, 2012

Taking a deep breath

Sometimes when you're running, you need to clear your lungs. Maybe it's the dust in the air, maybe it's just a build up of crud, but you pause in your rhythm and pull in as much air as your lungs can hold, and the blast it out. It clears the airways, gets you a small boost of oxygen, and lets you pick yourself up for the next mile.

When I'm mentally running, music is that deep breath of air that helps me clear the airways, focus on the future, and relax the mind. Ann Barnhardt has this up on her blog right now, and it's just the thing to clear my mind.

Do you want to know what the trick of being an excellent musician is? Oh, besides practicing, which is so obvious it doesn't need to be said. No, the trick of being an excellent musician is working at being not just a great player of whatever instrument you play, but of being able to play with other musicians, to mix your music in with theirs, and create something greater than the sum of the parts. You can have crystal clear tone, impeccable timing, and flawless technique, but if you cannot make your sound harmonize with anyone else, then all you'll be is a soloist in a field that demands an orchestra.

That's something to think about as we move forward, trying to defeat the most anti-American president to ever defile the Oval Office.